Feeling Faint

[swajj]

I started having anxiety attacks 7 years ago. I remember that my first "symptom" was a problem with my vision. I was convinced that I was going blind. Reassurances from my doctor and optometrist did nothing to stem my fears and I ended up at the eye specialist. It was only after being examined by the eye specialist that I accepted that there was nothing wrong with my vision. Of course that was only the beginning and I ended up the same way most HA sufferers seem to end up - a new illness and set of symptoms to replace the old one. It was also at this time that I started experiencing the dizziness and the feelings of being off balance.

I'm new here and since arriving I've started to see that HA sufferers suffer many identical symptoms. I find it reassuring to say the least.

You problem certainly sounds like anxiety. I hope that it makes you feel better to know that your symptoms are shared by many of us here.

[tayside lassie]

hiya... i hate when i get that symptom "the vision problems " .... that would set me off into panic ....

i see your new here so a big welcome ..

[Henry1234]

Thanks - yes it is a reassurance to read others experiences etc

[june]

What you feel:
You feel suddenly light-headed, woozy or dizzy. This is sometimes accompanied by a feeling that you might faint or pass out. It also may feel as though you are walking on a boat, or that the floor seems to move up and down and it's hard to balance. You may also have difficulty placing your feet because your perception of the ground or floor may be wrong. In some cases it may seem that even though you are standing on a firm floor, the floor may be vibrating or moving.

This is a very common feeling that most sufferers get. It’s usually as a result of hyperventilation but also of intense fear and the adrenalin hit.
Hi, I have pasted this in from "symptoms" on the left of screen - Main Menu.
The underlined passage is one of my worst symptoms - it makes me feel sick and that makes me panic.
June

[swajj]

Thanks for the welcome.

I think I've probably always had a fear of going blind (for no logical reason at all) and so that was just the first symptom to arise from my anxiety. A few months after I first visited the eye specialist I went back because I had floaters. Luckily he was aware of my anxiety problems and assured me that floaters were not unusual and that he had them in one eye as well.

Of course once my vision problems were solved I managed to come up with something else. I started doing the rounds of specialists according to whatever illness I had convinced myself I had. Lung specialist, bone specialist etc etc. I finally ended up at the psychiatrist and with his help I managed to overcome my anxiety problems for 6 years. That is until last September when the vision problems returned and I did the doctor/optometrist/eye specialist thing again.

I'm here now because for the last couple of weeks I have had stomach problems (of course stomach cancer in my mind). My doctor diagnosed acid reflux but I was less than confident in that diagnosis. At some point I recognised that I might be going through another bout of anxiety and so I looked up anxiety and stomach problems on Google and some how found my way here. I think it's probably the best thing that I ever did.

[june]

That is the problem we all have such vivid imaginations
we terrify our selves and then wonder why we panic.
I know all that but i can not stop the fears going the rounds time and time again.
Hope you feel better soon
June